Unbroken
by purplepagoda
Summary: This is the sequel to Shattered. Just when things seem to have settled. Just when Temperance thinks that she's reached her new normal there's some unlikely upheaval involving the love of her life.
1. Chapter 1

May 4th 2009-It's a beautiful spring day. The sun is out, flowers are blooming, and birds are chirping, none of which can be witnessed from inside Dr. Temperance Brennan's office. On this particular day she has just arrived at the office, and is waiting on Cam and Booth to show up so they can continue working on their case. She is studying the toxicology report that Cam had given her when she hears footsteps coming towards her. She looks up from her file and sees Caroline coming in the door.

"Caroline what are you doing here? It's not even nine o'clock yet," Temperance announces after looking at her watch.

"When is your publisher going to release your next book?"

"In October why?"

"Did you change the biography in the book?"

"To what?"

"Did you change it to mention anything about your son?"

"No, I don't want to subject him to public scrutiny. My publisher doesn't even know about him."

"So then it is impossible that anyone could have found out about him through your book?"

"Yes why?"

"Do you take him out in public?"

"You mean like to the grocery store or the park?"

"Yes, that's what I mean."

"Yes, I can't stop going place because I have a baby."

"I'm not judging you, I'm just asking."

"Why are you asking?"

Caroline pulls a folded document out of her briefcase and hands it to Temperance.

"What's this?"

"This morning I was informed that one of my cases was being reviewed."

"By whom?"

"By another lawyer."

"For what?"

"This was the copy of the motion that I was able to attain."

"Caroline what's going on?"

"Get ready because you're going to get served by the end of the day."

"For what?"

"They're about to put your personal life on trial."

"Excuse me?"

"Helen Harris is suing you for custody of your son."

"Excuse me?"

"Helen Harris is the mother of Jeremy Harris, the man who..."

"I know who they are. How can she do that? Why would she do that?"

"They'll make you have Liam's DNA tested."

"For what?"

"To prove that he doesn't belong to her son."

"But he does."

"But if he doesn't her lawyers will make a move to appeal, and sue you for defamation of character."

"But..."

"They won't be able to do that."

"So..."

"So her lawyers know that, so they're suing you for custody."

"Why?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I'm sure that Miss Harris' lawyer's will play up the race issue."

"What issue?"

"That Liam is part African-American."

"I don't understand."

"They'll argue he belongs with her because she is a professor who teaches African-American culture, and English that she's more qualified to raise him."

"She can't do this."

"I know that it's not fair, and it's not right, but..."

"She can't take him away from me. How is she better qualified to do anything for him? I'm an anthropologist. I can teach him about several cultures. and.."

"I know."

"And I'm his mother."

"I know."

"Do you think that I'm doing something wrong?"

"No. If anyone is qualified to teach him about any culture it's you."

"But?"

"But her lawyers will argue that she's more qualified to help him overcome any racial issues that he may face in his life."

"Why would she want to do this?"

"She probably doesn't believe that her son was the monster that he was. She wants to prove that he was innocent."

"Why does it matter? He's dead."

"But she's found a way to argue that he's innocent."

"He's not."

"I know."

"Can I settle?"

"What do you mean?"

"Can I just pay her to drop this?"

"I wouldn't recommend it."

"So what do I do?"

"Get ready to fight."

Caroline leaves. Moments later Seeley arrives with breakfast. Cam and Angela come in a few moments later.

"Are you ok?" Angela asks as they all stand in her office.

"No. I'm not. I'm going home," she tells them.

"We have a case. What makes you think that it would be ok to go home?"

She slings her bag over her shoulder. She grabs a few folders and the document that Caroline had given her. She gives them to Cam and walks past them. She leaves the building, and gets into her car. She's waiting at a stoplight when her phone rings.

"Hello?"

"Temperance come back. We'll figure this out, you can't just leave."

"I can't be at work, where I can do nothing to stop anything."

"Temperance...."

"Seeley don't," she hangs up.

A few minutes later she arrives at her apartment. She unlocks the door and walks in. She shuts the door behind her, and heads into Liam's room. She finds the nanny changing his diaper. The nanny fastens the tabs and begins redressing the baby when she notices Temperance standing in the doorway.

"What are you doing here? Is something wrong?"

"I can take it from here."

"Dr. Brennan I..."

"Anna you're not doing anything wrong. I'm not firing you, I'm just giving you the day off."

"Why?"

"Some things have come up, and I would feel more at ease if I had Liam with me."

"What's going on?"

"I'll explain it to you later right now I'd just like to..."

"Dr Brennan are you ok?"

"No I'm not."

"What's wrong?" Anna asks as she hands Liam to Temperance.

"I'm being sued for custody."

"By whom?"

"It's a long story, one that I don't care to discuss in detail."

"I understand."

"It's complicated."

"I figured this much," Anna smiles as she tosses the dirty diaper into the diaper pail.

"I'm sorry if I scared you."

"There is no one that could ever replace you."

"I know I'm his mother..."

"Dr. Brennan I've worked for a lot of people. Most people hire nannies because they don't want to be bothered with their children. They have a baby, and then they just go back to work and expect a nanny to raise a child. Most people work, and work, and work even if that means missing their son's first steps, or skipping their daughter's first dance recital. You're different. You're a good, a great mother. You love him, and he's your number one priority. There isn't anyone more qualified to raise this little boy than you."

"Thank you Anna."

"Anytime Dr. Brennan."

Temperance sits down in the rocking chair after Anna leaves the room. She holds Liam closely. He starts whimpering. She looks down at him.

"I'm probably suffocating you aren't I?" she asks as she gets out of the chair. "Liam," she whispers softly. He looks up at her and grins from one ear to the other. "Let's go somewhere. Do you want to go bye-bye?"

She tosses some diapers, a change of clothes, a pacifier, a couple of toys, and a blanket into his diaper bag. She zips it tightly and slips a tiny green, zippered hoodie on him. She pulls the hood over his head and leaves the room. With her keys in her hand, a diaper bag on her shoulder, and a baby in her arms she leaves the apartment.

She gets to her car and places the diaper bag in the backseat. She carefully secures Liam in his carseat and shuts the door. She climbs into the driver's seat and puts the key in the ignition. She looks in her rearview mirror. Liam sits in his seat trying to pull a sock off one of his feet.

"Where are we going? Huh? Where am I taking you?" she asks him. He looks up at her and smiles. She turns the car on and pulls onto the street. She just starts driving. She somehow ends up in the parking lot at the Jeffersonian. She pulls into a spot and turns off the car. She removes the baby from the back seat and heads into the building. Knowing that no one would be able to take him away from her when she was there with all of the people who cared about her, and about her son.


	2. Chapter 2

She slips past Cam and Seeley who are both standing on the platform. She makes her way to Angela's office. Angela sits at her computer typing vigorously. She stops suddenly, even though Temperance hasn't made a noise.

"Liam," she says quietly before turning around. She jumps up and makes her way for the baby. She holds out her hands and he squeals at her. She takes him from Temperance.

"How did you know that I was here? I thought that I was being quiet."

"You were."

"So how did you know?"

"I smelled him."

"Does he have dirty diaper? I don't..."

"No he smells like baby."

"Excuse me?"

"Babies have a very distinct scent."

"You mean baby powder?"

"And shampoo, and lotion. I love the smell. Maybe they should make a scratch and sniff."

"Yeah," she nods.

"Why did you leave earlier? You know that Cam isn't going to like that you have him here with you."

"He's not with me right now, he's with you."

"What's going on? Why did you freak out? What made you go get him?"

"Helen Harris is suing me for custody of him."

"Harris? Harris why does that name sound so familiar?"

Temperance turns ghostly pale and is unable to answer. Angela looks at her and remembers instantly.

"Right," she nods.

"She can't take him from me. She doesn't have any right to him. He's my son."

"I know sweetie."

"Can you watch him for a little while?"

"Why? Where are you going?"

"I need to..."

"Bren don't do anything stupid."

"I just want to talk to her."

"That's a very bad idea."

"Why? If I can convince her that..."

"You have to do this the right way. You don't have anything to worry about. No one can take him from you."

"But what if she can? What if somehow she convinces a judge that she has a right to have him, she doesn't even have to do that. All she has to do is convince a judge that she should be a part of his life."

"Just because her son... she could be a wonderful person."

"I don't care. I don't want her to see him. I don't want her in his life."

"Why not?"

"You know why."

"Tell me."

"Do you have any idea what kind of damage that could do to him? Her idea of her son is clearly not of who he really was. She saw her son, and nothing else. I don't want her to tell my son anything about that man, because her judgement is clouded. I don't want her to make my son resent me, or hurt him in anyway. I don't care who she is or how nice she is, she could be a saint, it wouldn't matter. Her presence in my baby's life would only cause him pain."

"I know that."

"So what do I do?"

"You fight. Sweetie no one is going to let him be taken away. We won't let it happen."

"But what if we can't stop it?"

"We will."

"She can't have him."

"I know that."

They hear the sound of stilettos coming towards them. Cam comes into the room before either of them can react.

"What is he doing here? Doctor Brennan I thought that I made it clear that..."

"Cam it's an emergency," Angela tells her.

"What kind of an emergency? Is your nanny sick? Because that is not my problem."

"Helen Harris is trying to get custody of Liam," Angela tells her

"She can't do that can she?"

"Apparently she can."

Booth comes in behind them. "What's he doing here?" he asks as he approaches Angela.

Temperance walks out of the room.

"What's wrong? Where is she going?"

"I don't know, but you should let her go."

"What's going on? Why is he here? Not that I'm complaining but..."

"Helen Harris is trying to gain custody of Liam,"Cam announces.

"She can't do that."

"Well apparently she can try,"Cam answers him.

"Do you want your daddy?" Angela asks.

Seeley takes the baby from her. "You're willingly giving him up?" he questions her.

"I need to go talk to her."

"Why you?"

"Because she needs me."

"Why not me? I..."

"Booth she needs me."

He nods and Angela leaves the room. She finds Temperance in her office sitting at her desk, staring at it.

"Sweetie what are you doing?"

"Am I a bad mother?"

"No sweetie why would you think that?"

"I don't have any pictures of him here. Other mothers they show off pictures, and when people ask me if I have kids I don't know what to say. I don't know if I'm doing this because I'm trying to protect him, or if I'm trying to protect me. When did I become so concerned with what people think of me?"

"When you had a sweet little boy, who you worry about. A little boy who you wonder what people would think about him if they knew. You don't want the world to treat him differently. You want them to see him how you see him. He's your sweet, innocent, little boy. You don't want to have to justify your decisions to people, and you shouldn't have to."

"What should I say when people ask me if I have kids? I always just change the subject. I don't want anyone to think that I'm ashamed of him, because I'm not. I love him, more than I could have ever expected to love anyone, but..."

"It's within your right to want to protect him from all the bad in the world."

"Ange I could have lied and said that he was Booth's, he would have even signed the birth certificate, but I just couldn't. I mean all anyone would have to do was take one look at him."

"What do you mean? Bren he looks like you."

"You mean the dark curly hair or the golden skin?"

"No, the big bright eyes, and the ears."

"Would it have been better for him if I had given him up for adoption? Then he never would have had to know and..."

"No. You're his mother. He would have always wondered why you didn't want him. That would have hurt a lot worse than you wanting him."

"This is going to become a circus."

"Why?"

"My book is about to be published... the media is going to have a heyday with this."

"You can only protect him so much. Keeping him in a bubble away from the world hurts him more than it helps him."

"He's perfectly content."

"Because he doesn't know any better yet."

Cam comes into the office holing a sleeping baby.

"Where did Booth go?"

"He had to go interrogate a suspect."

"I believe that this belongs to you," she smiles as she attempts to give the baby to Dr. Brennan. She gets out of her chair and walks past Cam. She pulls out a play pen and opens it next to the couch. Cam gently lays the sleeping baby inside. The three women silently sit down. Angela and Temperance sit in chairs and Cam sits on the couch in between them.

"He's so happy, and pleasant all the time. What do you do to him?" Cam questions.

"Nothing, that's just the way he is," Temperance answers.

"Dr. Brennan you know that we won't let anything happen to him. We're all here for you."

"I know."

"Is he smiling?" Cam asks.

"Yes," Angela nods.

"He's asleep."

"Uh huh," Temperance answers.

"He reminds me of Booth," Cam adds.

Temperance looks at her questioningly. "How so?" she wonders.

"When he smiles he has this look about him. That same one that Booth has sometimes."

"You mean the charm smile?" Angela clarifies.

"Absolutely," Cam answers.

Temperance says nothing. She sits in silence and stares at her sleeping baby. _No matter what it takes, I won't let anyone take you from me, _she thinks to herself. As if he can hear her he opens his eyes and looks at her for a one brief moment. He smiles, and drifts back to sleep seconds later.


	3. Chapter 3

Temperance sits in the chair and nervously fiddles with the buttons on her jacket. Angela stands off to the side holding Liam.

"You seem nervous do you want some water?" the interviewer asks her.

"No I'm... I'll be ok."

"Are you ready?" the blonde interviewer asks her.

"Yeah," she nods.

The cameras start rolling and the instant they do Liam starts crying. Angela attempts to quiet him down, but is unsuccessful.

"Could you excuse me for a minute please?" Temperance as she gets up. She takes the baby from Angela and returns to the chair. She sits down and pats the baby on the back, and puts her finger in his mouth. He starts chewing on her, and stops crying.

"Angela can you bring me..."

Angela reaches her with a diaper bag before she finishes her thought. She turns the baby around pulls out a teething ring. She swaps the teething ring for her fingers.

"Dr. Brennan we need to do your interview."

"I think we should reschedule. He just started teething and I just don't think now is the best time."

The interviewer looks at her in puzzlement. She studies her notes and looks at Temperance peculiarly.

"Your bio doesn't mention anything about kids."

"No it doesn't."

"So he's..."

"He's mine."

"Your what?"

"He's my son."

"I wasn't aware that you had a baby."

"Most people aren't."

"So how did you find time to write a book with a new baby?"

"Most of it was already written."

"But you wrote part of it after he was born?"

"No. I was done by the time he was born. I wrote the last portion of it while I was pregnant with him."

"How did you write a book, work, and prepare for a new baby all at once?"

"I didn't. I had to stop working because my doctor put me on bed rest."

"Why?"

"My doctor was concerned about my blood pressure. He felt that the stress from my job caused my blood pressure to increase. He didn't want the baby to come early."

"So how long were you on bed rest?"

"It wasn't strict bed rest, but being at home all day everyday made me a little bit antsy. I ended up only being on bed rest for three weeks because he decided to come early anyway."

"How early was he?"

"He came about five weeks before his due date. He was bigger than they expected, and he was healthy."

"So how old is he?"

"He's three months old."

"He's gorgeous."

"I think so."

"A lot of people have speculated that your real life partner is the basis for the love interest of the main character in your book."

"He's not."

"So your little boy doesn't belong to your partner?"

"No. My partner is a part–a very important part– of my son's life, but my son doesn't belong to him. You have to understand that what I write is fiction. I do use some of the characteristics of the people around me for the characters in my book, but what I write is strictly fiction."

"So you have no interest in your real life partner?"

"I don't think that is at all relevant to my book."

"So will you be taking a break after this book?"

"A break from what?"

"Writing? I'm sure that you don't have a lot of spare time with a new baby."

"I actually have a couple of ideas for a new book, I haven't started to write the next book yet, but I have been thinking about it a lot."

"Where will you find the time to write a new book?"

"He's a very good baby, he sleeps through the night so I don't think that it will be a problem."

"When will you have time to sleep if you write while he sleeps?"

"He is normally asleep by eight or eight thirty."

"So you are planning to do another book?"

"In my line of work there is no shortage of inspiration for plot. It might be a while before I finish another book, but I'd love to write another one."

"So are you doing a book tour, or book signing for this book?"

"It depends. I'm very doubtful that I'll do a book tour, because I don't want to leave him, or expose him to all of that chaos, but if I can I'd gladly do a couple of book signings as long as they're in the D.C. area."

Temperance shifts her gaze to the infant boy sleeping in her arms. She sighs and returns her glance to the interviewer.

"I think that about covers it. Thank you," the interviewer stands up and moves into shake her hand. "You're hands are pretty full..."

Temperance holds Liam with one hand and shakes the interviewer's with the other. The cameras stop rolling.

The interviewer turns to one of the cameramen. "Mike is the camera off?"

"Yeah Jess we're done."

"Good," she smiles. She moves towards Temperance. "He's so quiet."

"He's a good baby," Temperance answers.

After the interview Angela and Temperance meet Seeley at the diner for lunch. He's waiting on them the second they walk in the door. Before Temperance can even reach the table he's motioning for the baby.

"No," she tells him.

Seeley looks at her in confusion. She sits the carseat down in the seat next to the window. She takes the seat across from Seeley, and Angela grabs the chair on Booth's side of the table. Angela and Seeley stare at Temperance intently. Angela cracks the silence, "Sweetie are you ok?"

"I'm perfectly fine," she answers.

"Are you sure?" Angela asks as Seeley sits silently.

"Of course. Why are you asking me this?"

"Why wouldn't you give Liam to Booth?"

"He's sleeping."

"So?"

Temperance stares at the sleeping baby and says absolutely nothing.


End file.
